Two images of St Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Hill Street in Douglas.

The first view is from Bucks Rd with it’s junction of Finch Rd.

The second view is a wide angle lens shot taken from within the grounds of this beautiful Church.

This fine building, whose foundation stone was laid in 1857, opened on the 4th August 1859 with great ceremony which caused not a little adverse comment from certain elements in the Methodist community.

Built to the design of Henry Clutton in French Gothic early 13th Century style. Interior decoration includes work by Peter Paul Pugin and Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.

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Inside Malew Church is this wonderful sculpture of the Manx Martyr William Christian better known as Illiam Dhone which was sculptured by Manxman Bryan Kneale.

William Christian, known in Manx as Illiam Dhone (Brown William), was considered a traitor by the Stanleys but a patriot by many of the Manx for his actions in surrendering the Island to the Parliamentary troops during the Civil War. At his trial many members of the House of Keys were unwilling to condemn him and as a result were removed and replaced by others who would find William Christian guilty.

By October 1651 the Island was besieged by Parliamentary forces who demanded that the Manx surrender. Stanley had been captured in England. His wife, Countess Charlotte de la Tremouille, tried to negotiate for her husband’s release but when she learnt of her husband’s execution and that the Island’s garrisons were to be surrendered by William Christian (the Island’s Receiver General), she finally admitted defeat.

The Manx Rebellion, as it was known, was a bloodless coup with English Parliamentary forces taking over administration of the Island. The Keys, which after 1600 had been a permanent representative body, continued to meet periodically during this time.

When King Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660 and the 8th Earl of Stanley returned to the Island, the Earl accused William Christian of treason for the surrendering the Island in 1651 and had him executed by firing squad at Hango Hill, outside Castletown, on January 2nd 1663, despite the issue of a general pardon granted by Charles II.

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This tiny church was originally a Methodist Chapel but changed to a C of E in 1968 after being sold to a Mr Yates of Milntown for £100. He died just after and his wife renovated the small Church at a cost of £3000.

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King Orry is a almost legendary character revered by the Manx as their greatest king. He was King Godred Crovan, who seized the throne in 1079 and created the Kingdom of Mann and the Isles stretching from the Irish Sea to the outer Hebrides.

These are the remains of two prehistoric chambered tombs. King Orry’s Grave was built by farmers about 5000 years ago, who were able to devote spare time and resources to the construction of these tombs in remembrance of their ancestors. The tombs consisted of a line of stone-built chambers buried under a cairn of earth and stones.

Across the road and behind Gretch Lea Cottage is the other tomb, where the two parts of the graves were all connected, but clear evidence for this has been complicated by the construction of the houses and roads.

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Peter Killey’s Isle of Man Photos

Thank you for visiting my website. Here you will find a large selection of Isle of Man images and where possible a snippet of information and/or history from every corner of this beautiful Island. Keep having a look back at Manxscenes.com as it is regularly updated. Feel free to leave a comment on any of the images or topics. If you would like to use any of my Isle of Man images please get in touch with me via the 'Contact Peter' tab. Enjoy...